Protecting Her Heart
by Genevieve Kelly
Summary: One villain is finally no longer a threat thanks to Killian risking his life to right a wrong from his dark past. Unfortunately, there are consequences and Hook hides a secret from Emma in order to protect her, not wanting her to risk fulfilling Gold's plan to darken her heart on account of him. This story takes place among Poor Unfortunate Soul and Best Laid Plans, etc...
1. Chapter 1

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter One

 _Hook walked the docks alongside Ursula and her father, then stopped and looked at the villain he had wronged as he spoke up saying quietly, "I suppose this is farewell."_

 _The sea witch nodded, looking between the pirate as well as her father while he walked on ahead of them, then she responded sincerely, "It is, but first, I have to hold up my end of the deal. Gold's plan... I'm afraid it involves Emma. She's the only way he can secure happy endings for the villains."_

 _"Well, I thought he was gonna get the Author to rewrite everyone's stories?" Killian asked in confusion._

 _"It's not that simple," she answered while she continued to look at the man still standing before her. "The Author can't just change things in this world because he didn't give everyone their happy endings here."_

 _Hook looked away from her as he replied with concern, "Emma did."_

 _He sighed as Ursula continued, "She's the savior. And as long as there's a savior, the Author can't give the villains what they really want. And the Dark One knows this."_

 _"The Dark One's gonna try to kill Emma?" he said fearfully._

 _"Worse... he plans to fill her heart with darkness forever," the woman responded remorsefully as his fear for the woman he loved grew deeper, as did his anger for the monster who's haunted him for most of his three hundred years of life._

No more words were spoken as Ursula gently patted his arm, then walked away to follow after her father. Hook watched as the two sea creatures jumped into the portal she opened up so that they could return home to their own realm, then once they were gone, he slowly walked back down to his ship.

After the kind of day he's already had on top of having to deal with his guilt over what he had done to Ursula long ago, as well as with nearly giving back into the darkness he knew was still inside of him when he threatened to kill her just this afternoon, Killian needed time alone before he returned to the Charmings' loft and told Emma and her family of Gold's plans. Emma was kind enough to keep reminding him that he shouldn't keep blaming himself for the things he's done in his past, but he wasn't ready to forgive himself. He's done too much wrong.

Unfortunately, his thoughts were interrupted within minutes of stepping onto the deck of the Jolly Roger as a voice Hook knew only too well spoke up from behind him stating, "Hello again, Captain. It feels as though it has been a long time, six weeks, although I'm willing to bet that for you, it hasn't been long enough."

Hook instinctively raised his hook in front of him as he turned around and glared at his enemy while he muttered icily, "Bloody Crocodile. You should never have returned to where you're not wanted. If you think…"

"Save your threats, Hook," Gold interrupted as he suddenly forced Killian back against one of the masts of his ship now behind him with his power. "You know exactly what it is I am capable of, so I suggest for now, you listen."

"And what is it you want from me?" the pirate asked in frustration as the man he hated more than anyone drew uncomfortably closer, then cautiously roamed his hand up over his chest until Gold finally pulled back upon sensing powerful magic where there wasn't any before.

Rumpelstiltskin smiled as he answered smugly, "It appears that the Savior got wise and placed a protection spell over your heart after I nearly succeeded in crushing it."

Killian replied curtly, "Indeed she did. At least she cares enough for me to not want to see me suffer like that again, or at the very least to not want to risk you using me for more of your dirty work. Is that why you've come, to finish the job? I'm afraid you'll have to find another way. Do your worst, villain."

"Actually, I've only come for a chat, Captain," the shop owner responded in frustration as he stepped away, then turned his back to Hook as Gold looked out at the horizon while he continued to talk. "I need you still alive for what comes later. You succeeded in turning one of my allies against me and somehow managed to return her happy ending, without the Author's assistance. I will admit, I didn't think doing so could actually be done. You continue to surprise me."

"Yes, well luckily for me I knew what it was Ursula was seeking," Killian answered while he continued to struggle against the invisible force holding him in place. "So sorry for ruining your plans to exploit the sea witch's pain for your own selfish reasons. And now I know exactly what those reasons are. I won't allow you to succeed. Emma will never fall for your tricks, Crocodile. She won't turn dark, as she's far too strong."

Rumpelstiltskin smiled smugly once again as he turned back around to look at the pirate and then replied cruelly, "Which is why I have plans to hurt her and those she loves most in order to force her to do what it is I need her to do. Both Cruella and Maleficent have their own roles to play, which should come about within the next few days. Luckily for me, I get the pleasure of coming here for you, dearie. In the morning, you can try to go and tell Emma and her family whatever it is you think you know, but for tonight, I'm afraid you will be much too occupied with trying to help yourself. Emma will be able to heal you, but I have a feeling that you will do everything you can to try to keep what I'm about to do to you, a secret, for her protection of course."

Killian looked at the Dark One with concern on his brow as he asked nervously, "What are you talking about?"

Without another word, the monster standing directly in front of his enemy raised his hand, using his powers to forcefully yank Killian's hook from his brace over his left arm, then willed it to rip open the captain's jacket and shirt he was wearing to reveal his bare chest, and proceeded to carve letters deep into his chest, eliciting agonizing cries from Hook as Gold watched with gratification upon seeing him in pain. It wasn't the same as killing him, the way he nearly had until his wife had gotten the better of him, but this was nearly just as satisfying.

Just as Gold was about finished, the sound of a dog barking in the distance interrupted him and as the animal's bark drew closer, the villain quickly etched the last letter and finally released his hold on Hook, causing the pirate to collapse upon the ship's deck, his bloodied hook falling in front of him, then Rumple dissipated within a black cloud of smoke before he could be seen.

"Pongo!" Hook heard the dog's master call out as the animal ran up onto the deck and stood before the wounded man as he struggled to sit up and lean back against the mast still behind him, then Pongo began to growl at the spot where the wizard had stood moments before until Archie stepped onboard the vessel as well and ran over to him, not seeing Killian right away as he did. "Pongo, what are you…? Hook?"

"Oh my God, what happened?" the doctor asked in concern as he swiftly made his way to the captain's side and took in the ghastly sight as Killian held his bloodied hand over a wound which Archie couldn't make out, as a massive amount of blood trickled out between his fingers, covering his clothes and the deck around him. "Who did this to you?"

Killian could barely lift his head to look at the man kneeling beside him, but he responded weakly, "It doesn't matter. You need to go. Forget you even saw me here tonight, like this."

Archie looked at the man in confusion and then answered with concern, "No, you need help. I'll call for an ambulance."

"Look mate," Hook replied more forcefully. "I've treated many a wounds such as this meself. I've got supplies here. I'll be fine."

"Hook, I know that you're resistant to accept others' help when there's danger involved, but I can't in good conscience leave you here alone to tend to yourself," the doctor responded worryingly. "If you refuse to let me get you to the clinic, then I'll just have to stay here and help you myself. I can call Emma…"

Killian quickly answered, "No! You can't. You can't tell anyone. It will do us all more harm than good."

Archie replied, "Okay. It's against my better judgement, but I promise not to say anything."


	2. Chapter 2

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Two

"It's a good thing I was taking Pongo out for a walk at this hour," Archie said with concern after he finally laid Killian down upon his bed within his quarters, then observed the captain as he struggled to sit up against the far wall behind him and pull his flask up to his lips before taking a drink to help quell the pain. "I have a feeling he saved you tonight. Are you going to tell me what happened, or who did this to you?"

"Believe me, the less you know the better," Hook answered despondently, without turning his head to look at the man who only wanted to help him. "And I was never in any real danger. I have clean bandages there, on the shelf above the safe. There should be a needle and thread around there somewhere as well."

The psychiatrist found the supplies as the pirate said he would and turned back to hand them down to Hook, his eyes stopping on the wounds carved into his flesh that were now visible as Killian weakly removed his jacket and shirt, then Archie immediately went to his aid to help him as he stated the single word out loud, "Villain? I don't understand, what is that supposed to mean? Was it someone from your past who's come to Storybrooke seeking revenge for something you've done?"

Killian looked into the doctor's eyes for not more than a second and upon seeing a hint of fear in them, though not fear for his welfare, but fear for himself, he immediately looked away and stared ahead as he replied coldly, "I suppose a man can never fully change who he really is, no matter how hard he tries to be a man he's not. I suggest you leave, Cricket. Believe me when I say I am not worth your time or trouble."

"No, you're wrong," Archie responded remorsefully as he took a seat on the edge of the bed and carefully continued to aid the pirate by pulling back the cloth he was using to stifle the blood in order to try to get a closer look at the lacerations, then stood and walked over to the table to pour clean water into a basin so that he could clean them before Killian could stitch himself up. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you think that I was afraid of you just then because I'm not. Like everyone in this town, I've seen how hard you've worked to become the good man that you are now. You have changed, Hook. I see how much you love Emma and know that you would do anything to protect her, as well as the rest of us. If you're in trouble…"

"If Emma learns of what happened, she will wish to seek out who did this and if she does, it could risk something far worse," the Captain interrupted the man for the second time that evening. "And I won't let it happen on my account."

The psychiatrist continued his ministrations as he spoke again out of concern, "Even at the expense of your own life?"

Killian gasped as pain suddenly flared across his chest when Archie accidentally pushed too hard and quickly apologized, then Hook answered, "Her life is far more important than my own. She is the Savior. I'm nothing more than a pirate who's done far more evils in his long life than good. Please go. Leave me to deal with this as I see fit. I'll be fine, I assure you."

"Surely whatever it is that you're so afraid of, cannot be as bad as it seems," Archie replied as he finally laid the cloth he was using to care to the Captain's wounds back down into the water and stood again to leave him be as Hook requested. "And even if it is, you should know that things will be better if you all work together to stop whatever's about to happen."

"Aye, and we will, but me telling Emma about what's happened here tonight isn't pertinent to what's coming," Hook responded callously toward himself, then he looked up again at the man standing above him. "Thank you, truly; for both your help and for your silence, doctor."

Meanwhile…

Inside of the loft, Emma continued to sit beside her friend laying on her bed and when he had finished telling her and Regina as much as he could about the Author and what he knew of Gold's and the other villains' plots, Regina left, leaving just the two of them alone again as August asked, "So, how have things been here in Storybrooke since I became… well since I became that cute boy I was again, other than you learning how to use your own magic of course?"

Emma smiled as she looked at him and answered, "I thought you said you remember everything that's gone on while you were that child? Surely you know of all of the villains we've faced since all that went down between Tamara and Greg?"

"Yes, but it's not like you've been to see me as often as I would have liked, and Papa was pretty particular and careful of the things he talked to me about," he replied quietly. "I know about your trip to Neverland to rescue Henry, I know about Neal… for which I'm so sorry for by the way. And you and Captain Hook are a thing now? How did that happen? When did that happen?"

"That's… a long story," she responded as she looked away and smiled. "Strangely enough, it all started when we were in Neverland. I thought Neal was dead, before he actually was, and Killian of all people for some reason was there for me, despite us starting out as enemies. He encouraged me not to give up and believed that I would find my son, even in the brief moment that I didn't. He saved my father, he told me Neal was still alive when Pan tried to manipulate him into working for him again even though he knew that Neal would get in his way of trying to win my heart, and we kissed. It was an accident, but amazing. And then everything happened after we returned home again and… Killian was always here for me. He loved me, no matter how hard I tried to fight against my feelings for him. At times he is so self-confident in the most annoying and endearing of ways, and yet he can also be so unsure of the good man he's become and selfless… I would love for you to get to know him, and he you."

August nodded weakly and then answered, "I'd like that. I'm happy for you, Emma. You deserve to be happy and it's clear that Hook makes you so."

Emma pats her friend's arm gently as she replied, "Thank you, August. Now, get some rest. Gold, Maleficent, and Cruella are still lose and are about to do something that isn't going to be easy for us to stop. We could use all the help we can get in going against them, including you."

"Don't worry, I'll be right as rain in no time," he responded assuredly. "I always am, aren't I?"

"Yes, you are," she stated as she stood to let him sleep. "And I'll be close by if you need me."

Emma walked over to the window and looked out in the distance toward the direction of the docks, even though she couldn't actually see the ocean or the Jolly Roger from the view of her family's loft. A war between the heroes and villains was still coming and she knew that whatever the villains' plans were, defeating them would be difficult, but after having the opportunity to speak about the man who made her the most happy she realized then that she's ever been with someone, Emma didn't allow her fear of what was coming bother her any more that night.

She thought back to Killian's declaration of love and realized that she really did love him too, but it worried her that she knew herself well enough to know that she would be too afraid to tell him so. If something ever happened to him, as tragedy came to the other men in her life, she didn't know what she would do or how she would react and being out of control over her own feelings terrified her. Emma didn't know then that Hook was in any danger, nor that Rumpelstiltskin's plans involved hurting him to get to her.


	3. Chapter 3

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Three

When morning came, Emma went with Regina and Henry as they moved him to the apprentice's mansion where the Blue Fairy could keep an eye on him while he recovered. Then she left to meet up with Killian at Granny's for breakfast, but after she waited for him for nearly a half an hour without receiving any calls or messages, she became worried and finally walked back to the loft, where she found Hook standing inside with her parents, it being apparent that he had just arrived there himself.

She looked at Killian as she stated in frustration, "You didn't meet me at Granny's this morning. Did you forget?"

The truth was he didn't forget about their plans to get together, but Killian was still struggling against his injuries from Gold's attack and it took until now before he had enough strength to leave his ship and keep his pain under control so that no one would suspect he was hurting.

Hook looked at her despondently as replied, "Forgive me, love. I'm afraid something came up, and… I didn't think to call. You know how I feel about those talking devices."

" _Killian, what's wrong?" she asked nervously upon seeing the worry on his face as she set her phone down on the table and unbuttoned her coat._

 _"Before Ursula left, she told me what the villains have planned," he responded calmly, though he really wasn't. "To get their happy endings, they intend to darken your heart, love, to turn you into a villain so you'll no longer be the savior."_

 _Henry looked at him in confusion as he stated, "What? You can't just un-savior the savior."_

 _Killian looked over at the boy and then between Emma and her parents as he continued on, "Ursula said Gold has a way. He can use The Author to do it."_

 _"That's insane," Emma answered with disbelief on her face and in her voice. "If that's what their plan is, stop worrying. It's ridiculous. Author or no Author, I am not going dark."_

 _"But darkness is a funny thing," Hook replied as he fear for her and disdain for himself came across his face, being unable to hide his emotions any longer. "It creeps up in you."_

 _Emma walked over to stand in front of him and softened her eyes in hope of putting his mind at ease as she responded sincerely, "Hey, no one... not Rumpelstiltskin or some author... gets to decide who I am."_

She gently touched his face in hope of putting his mind at ease before she pulled him into a hug as he wrapped his arms around her as well while her parents whispered amongst themselves, then walked out of the apartment, clearly upset about Hook's news, or possibly something else.

When Hook pulled away from her embrace, Emma could feel him tremble and caught him as he winced, then she quickly asked, "Killian, are you alright?"

"Of course, Swan," he answered nervously as he turned away from her and started to walk to the door to leave. "I'm just worried about you, is all. I'm going to go. Call me if you need..."

"Wait," she interrupted as she reached out to grab his arm, then turned him around to get him to look at her again. "Hey, I promise you I'm going to be fine. Gold will never succeed in darkening my heart. I'm smart enough to not let him get to me."

Hook nodded and replied, "Aye, of course you're right, love."

She smiled as she responded, "Good. Now, we missed breakfast at Granny's, but if you'd like, I can make us something to eat here?"

"That does sound wonderful, but shouldn't you be getting after your parents?" he inquired fairly. "They seemed pretty upset, but it also seemed like something more was bothering your mother. You really ought to go check up on her."

"Are you trying to avoid me?" the blonde asked mockingly. "Come on, I'm sure they're both fine. My dad will make sure that Mom's okay. It's clear that you've been pretty upset yourself, and not just about the villains' plans for me. After all that you've been through with Ursula and with learning that Gold's return to Storybrooke…"

Killian simply nodded as they took a seat on the couch in front of the loft's window, then Emma spoke again saying calmly, "Please talk to me. What happened yesterday after you left to go off after Ursula? When she came back to the cabin alone, I was afraid that she had hurt you, or worse, that you were killed like she thought she had done to you."

He finally relented as he kept his gaze on the floor in front of him while he answered quietly, "You know now of what I did to her, how I stole her singing voice in order to spite her father. At the time, he and Ursula both gave me an opportunity to help me in my revenge against Rumpelstiltskin and in a single moment, he took that opportunity away and I was so angry that I wanted to hurt him. I pulled her voice into that shell and kept it after all these years because I knew how much it meant to her and to him. Her voice was her only remaining grasp onto her mother and her father wanted her to use it for his own bloody will. Ursula had every right to hate me after what I'd done, as I hated myself."

"You fixed your mistake, Killian," she replied kindly upon seeing the sadness and remorse fall over his face as she gently put her hand over his cheek again to pull his head up in hope that he would look at her. "You gave her back her happy ending and now Ursula is no longer a threat against us. You should be proud of yourself."

"I might have corrected one wrong, Swan, but that hardly makes up for all of the vile deeds I've done in the rest of my past," he responded in anger as he pushed her hand away with more force than he intended to and stood up quickly, wincing as he did so as his pain flared again, though he still managed to keep it hidden from the woman still sitting behind him. "Before I realized I needed to bring her father here, I pulled a gun on Ursula. I was so angry she was going to go back on her word to tell me of Gold's plans… If she hadn't have struck me down with her tentacle and tossed me overboard, I would have returned to being that ruthless man you met back in the Enchanted Forest."

Emma reached up to take his hand, then pulled him back down beside her once more as she turned his head to get him to finally look at her as she answered, "You're wrong. You are not that man anymore. I know you, Killian. I know how hard you've worked to become the good man you are now and I don't believe that you would have killed her if you were given the chance. You are far too hard on yourself."

Hook smiled softly as she leaned in to kiss him and when he pulled away again, he replied, "You have always seen the good in me, even when I don't deserve it. Perhaps you're right. And perhaps Gold and this Author won't succeed in darkening your heart as I fear, but Gold is far more ruthless than I. He will stop at nothing to get you to turn against yourself. Take it from someone who knows better than anyone else. Protect those closest to you, your boy, your parents… They already went after your friend, or whatever he might be to you. And something far worse is coming. We need to do something more to discover what they're up to."

"Regina is working on trying to figure the rest of their plan out," the Savior responded, noticing something was still off with him, especially when he failed to include himself in the list of people closest to her. "She says she's getting close. Thanks to August, we now know where the Author is. We now have the advantage."

"Never assume we have the advantage over the Crocodile, Swan," Killian answered brusquely as he looked hard into her eyes. "Trust me, that is how he gets you. It is how he got me. I allowed him to manipulate me into helping him trap that old man into that bloody hat and what led him to ripping out my heart so that I would no longer have the choice, but to continue his dirty work. He won't ever stop, unless we stop him."


	4. Chapter 4

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Four

After he finished admitting his dark confessions, Hook finally changed the subject as he asked about August's own wellbeing, mostly in attempt to draw Emma's attention away from him. He even pretended to act jealous of her relationship with the other man. Or maybe it wasn't as much pretend as he would like to think, as a part of him feared that this man might be something more to the woman he loved than she knew herself. However, she reassured him that August was nothing more to her than a good friend and Killian believed her.

Unfortunately, their morning was interrupted when a wave of magic burst toward them from outside of town, knocking them both unconscious, as well as everyone else within town except for those who had already been put under the sleeping curse, which included, Snow White, Charming, and Henry.

While under Maleficent's spell, she and the other villains, Gold and Cruella, as well as Regina who was still working undercover with them, broke into the Charmings' loft in search for the book's page that they too had figured out contained the Author, and found both Emma and Hook asleep on the couch within each other's arms. It didn't take long for them to discover that the page wasn't there, nor was the key that could release the Author from the page, but Gold quickly realized where it could be, or more importantly, who it could be with.

 _After explaining this to the others in the room with him, Gold turned to Regina as he finally said coldly, "_ _Except those who have been under a sleeping curse and are immune. I may know a resourceful young man who's wide awake. One who's very protective of the storybook and all its contents... one who's gonna test his mother's commitment, towards helping me."_

The former Evil Queen didn't say anything as she began to follow after Cruella and Maleficent out the door until she stopped upon seeing Gold walk over to stand in front of Emma and Hook and she quickly asked, "What are you doing? I thought we were going to go try to find my son? You agreed with me yourself, harming the Savior would be ill advised."

"Yes indeed, but I didn't say anything about continuing to harm her boyfriend," the Dark One responded as he knelt down before the unconscious man and used his power to once again pull back his jacket, shirt, and the bandages the pirate captain had used to bind the wounds Gold had forced upon him. "I was interrupted before."

"What the hell is that?" Regina asked again worryingly upon seeing the cruel letters carved into the skin of his chest. "Villain? You did this to him?"

Mr. Gold grinned as he pulled a small vile out from his coat pocket and replied, "Just last night. He deserves to be punished for hindering our plans. I've seen how his past torments him and at the cabin, he admitted to Emma just how much so. The word I carved into his chest is meant to remind him of his torment."

The Queen swiftly walked forward to stand over the beast inside the man she was pretending to work for and upon seeing the liquid in his hand she quickly answered, "Whatever it is you're about to do, you can't do it. Emma and her family will come after you and believe me, you don't want that, especially when we're so close to finding the Author and getting our happy endings. Do you think that hurting your enemy right now is wise?"

"Are you asking this because you really want us to succeed in our plans, or are you asking me not to harm him because you've come to care for him, as you have come to care for Miss. Swan and her family?" he inquired smugly as he turned his head to look up at the woman standing over him.

"The pirate?" she stated, pretending to be surprised by his candor, even though she did care about her friends, including Hook, more than she cared to admit. "Please, I couldn't care less what happens to Captain Guyliner, or the rest of these heroes. I only care about Henry. It's just as I said, they will come after us even harder if you do this. Think about what they've already accomplished. They got that sea witch to leave Storybrooke."

Gold stood as he slowly poured the liquid over the wounds as he responded, "Ursula didn't just leave Storybrooke. The Captain somehow found a way to reward her with her happy ending, without the Author and she betrayed us by telling him of our plans, of which I am certain he has told the Savior and her parents of by now as well. But it's no matter. They will be far too distracted helping him to stop us now."

Regina worryingly replied, "If Hook can give a villain back her happy ending, then that means the Author isn't the only one who can give us ours. It means that the rules of the book aren't iron clad after all."

"Are you really willing to risk your own on something this pirate did?" Rumpelstiltskin asked harshly and then suddenly heard David call out his daughter's name from down the hallway. "Because I'm not. Now, I suggest we leave before they find us here and before the other witches find your boy without us and hurt him."

"Emma!" Mary Margaret called out again as soon as she pushed open their door and ran inside their apartment after they had finished watching both Cruella and Maleficent leave in Cruella's car, Mr. Gold and their friend having vanished just before they entered. "Oh my God, David quick! We need to get Hook help. Emma!"

She and David ran over to them, then David worked to check over their wounded friend while Mary Margaret checked on their daughter to make sure that she was actually alright upon seeing the condition Hook was in. Charming looked at his wife for confirmation as she nodded to indicate that Emma was fine, just sleeping still under Maleficent's spell.

Charming struggled with Hook as he laid him down on their bed where August had been laid the night before, then he spoke up saying, "I'd call Mother Superior, but she's still busy with August. I guess I'll call Whale to have him come… Dang it, we can't call anyone because they're all still under this spell and who knows how long it'll last. It's up to us. What on earth did Gold do to him?"

"I don't know, but we don't have time to find out," Snow answered worryingly. "Henry is at the mansion waiting for us, and the villains are on their way. David, we need to find him, before they can. We're all he has right now."

"No, he has Regina too," he said in frustration. "She won't let anything happen to him, but we still need to get there. We're going to have to trust Hook will be alright, until we can get back to him and Emma too. Come on, we need to hurry."

At the lakeside mansion…

 _David and Mary Margret ran inside and toward the library where they hoped they'd find their grandson as she called out, "Henry? Henry!"_

 _David shouted himself as they entered the large room, "Henry!"_

 _"Oh! Come on," she stated nervously to the young man as he walked out from within the shelves. "The villains have to be on their way."_

 _"Already been here," Henry responded quickly._

 _David looked at him as he asked curtly, "What? Did they take the page?"_

 _Emma's son smirked and shrugged his shoulders as he replied, "They think they did, except my mom, of course. She just gave me a look, and I knew exactly what she meant."_

 _"You gave them the forged page Emma made," Charming spoke again as he smiled, as did Snow._

 _"Smart kid," Mary Margaret said smugly, then became serious again, getting back to the business at hand. "Where's the real one?"_

 _When Henry pulled the real storybook out from among all of the blank books where he had hidden it from the villains, as well as the real page, David reached out and took it from him as he stated, "Oh, great job. Mary Margaret and I are gonna take this and keep it safe."_

 _Henry became excited as he added, "There's something else. I've found the key. We can free The Author."_

 _"Henry, hold on," his grandfather immediately answered as he stopped the boy from using the key to unlock the magic containing the Author inside by slamming the book closed and pulling it away from him._

 _"W… what are you doing?" the fifteen year old asked in confusion._

 _The Prince responded nervously, "Uh, we don't know what's gonna happen. Just let us handle things."_

 _Henry didn't understand as he continued to object, "But I found the key."_

 _David shouted at him saying, "Henry, it's too dangerous! Go!_ I'm sorry, Henry, it's just that the villains looked for the page at the loft first before they came here. Your mother's fine, but Hook… They did something to him. He's hurt. Head back there now. We'll be right behind you."

 _"So, now we're lying to Henry," Mary Margaret replied in frustration and then sighed after Henry finally left. "If we keep this up, we're no different than Gold."_

"I know what you mean, but we don't have a choice," her husband answered sadly. "At least for now we don't. Come on, we need to get back. Everything will be fine, I promise."


	5. Chapter 5

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Five

When Maleficent finally left Regina's vault after getting the information that she wanted from Gold about her daughter, Cruella quietly stepped out from behind the mausoleum until a small branch on the ground cracked beneath the dog lady's black stiletto heel, startling the sorceress, who immediately ignited a fireball within her hand at the threat, until she snuffed it out when she saw her associate smiling at her.

"You do realize sneaking up on me is a good way to get you killed?" Maleficent said coldly as she glared at the woman in the large fur coat now standing before her.

"You really ought to relax, darling," Cruella answered smugly as she began to walk alongside the other villain as they made their way back toward town. "Try having a few rounds of gin with me tonight. I've got plenty back at the dump I've been staying in, so long as we're stuck in this hellhole. It'll do you some good."

The dragon sorceress responded curtly, "No thank you. You and I both have plans that will finally finish our business here. I prefer to be sober."

Cruella chortled as she replied, "I am well experienced in the art of drinking, Mal, and believe me, you would know it if I were drunk. I know how to hold my liquor. I could give you a few tips."

"Is gin the only thing you care about, or do you actually want to win back your happy ending?" Maleficent asked angrily, having become fed up by her companion's lack of composure.

"I want what it is the Author stole from me back, as well as my heel through his scrawny head just as much as you want your daughter back," the woman with the ability to control animals sneered as she stopped and swiftly pulled Maleficent around to face her. "How I go about doing so, is my own business, not yours. Let me ask you, do you actually believe Rumpelstiltskin will really help us come out on top of these heroes, or do you believe as I do, that he'll betray us as he's done everyone else in his long, vile life?"

The sorceress looked back toward the vault as she answered coldly, "He will most definitely leave us to fend for ourselves, of that I have no doubt. I've known the Dark One longer than any of the rest of you, including Regina. We need to betray him first, before he can have the Author do to us as he plans for everyone else here, but Rumpelstiltskin is right about what we need to do so that the Author will have what he needs to give us what we want. I've already put my part of our plan into action and it won't be long now, before Snow White and Prince Charming will begin their precious daughter's descent into darkness, all on their own. Their guilt will be their undoing."

They continued to walk again as Cruella responded, "And soon I will get to begin my own fun. Will your sleeping spell be wearing off soon? How long is it supposed to last?"

"Not for much longer," Maleficent replied as they arrived within town and stood in the middle of the street, feeling the eeriness of the silence surrounding them. "I think we ought to take the advantage of the remaining time to disappear before someone spots us and has us thrown into a prison cell."

"Perhaps so, but first, I am going to head over to Granny's to raid as much of the old bat's liquor as I can carry," the black and white haired woman from the house of De Vil spoke again smugly. "It's the least she deserves for denying it to me when we first came into this God forsaken town. See you later, darling. Do let me know if you change your mind about having a drink with me. You know where I'll be."


	6. Chapter 6

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Six

Henry waited in silence inside the back of his grandfather's truck for him and his grandmother to follow him out of the mansion so that they could get back to their family loft, back to both Emma and Hook. The young man was baffled by David's sudden and harsh reaction to him wanting to release the Author so that they could finally get the answers that they sought out, but he was also worried about Hook upon hearing David's revelation that the villains had done something to hurt him while no one was around to protect the Captain and the Savior.

When they finally returned home, Henry was the first to enter the apartment and found that Maleficent's sleeping spell still had yet to wear off, as Emma was still lying down upon the couch, while Killian remained as he was upon the bed where David had left him earlier. David and Mary Margaret walked in within a minute behind Henry.

"I don't understand," Henry stated sadly as he slowly walked toward the man who had become a good friend to him, especially after the death of his father, and stared in revulsion at the cruel word etched across Hook's chest. "Mom should have stopped this. How could she have let Gold do this to him?"

"It's possible that Regina wasn't even here with them when it happened," Snow quickly replied to try to put the fifteen year old's mind at ease. "And even if she was, I'm sure that she would have done everything she could to try to stop them."

Henry looked between the loving couple standing behind him as he continued, "Killian isn't a villain anymore, but I know how hard he struggles with keeping from becoming that man again every day. This will crush him, and Mom."

Before either grandparent could say something more, the spell appeared to begin to wear off as both Hook and Emma slowly awakened and Mary Margaret immediately went to her daughter's side, while David and Henry stood over Hook, helping him to sit up as he winced in pain and looked up at them quizzically before looking down to see that his coat and shirt were open for his friends to see what had been done to him, then quickly worked to re-button his clothing before Emma could see the lacerations as well, motioning to them not to say a word.

They seemed to understand at the moment as he slowly stood from the bed with their help, while Emma weakly stood up with her mother's help and asked in confusion, "What the hell just happened? I don't… There was this strange purple wave of magic coming toward us and then, nothing."

"Maleficent cast a sleeping spell over the entire town so that the villains would be free to come in here in search for the page without anyone to stop them," Snow answered nervously as she looked over once again at Hook, who slowly made his way back over to Emma's side to make sure that she was okay as her parents had already, strangely acting like nothing had been done to him.

"Don't worry, they didn't get it," David asked as he too looked at the pirate oddly until he turned to look at his daughter so as to not draw any more attention to him that he didn't want, especially from Emma. "The spell didn't affect Henry, your mother, or me because we've all been under a sleeping curse before. Henry ran all the way to the apprentice's mansion with the page and the book, then hid it so that the villains wouldn't find it. They found him before we could get to him, but Regina protected him by letting him know with a look to give them the forgery you created this morning. Henry's a very clever kid."

Emma smiled at her son as she responded, "Oh believe me, I know it. Did anything else happen while we were asleep?"

Killian looked between her parents and Henry harshly, then turned back to Emma as he replied for them, "Everything appears to be fine, Swan. Listen, perhaps I should leave so that you can have some time alone with your family to talk about what was troubling them earlier. If everything else is all right…"

"Whatever it is they have to tell me, they can say in front of you too," Emma answered, pulling him back to her as she grasped onto his hand before he could leave. "You don't always have to feel like you have to leave whenever a family matter comes up. I want you to stay."

"Of course, love," he responded hesitantly.

As Mary Margaret and David had reluctantly agreed upon at the mansion before they left the library after their grandson, they sat down with their daughter and her boyfriend, while Henry had left the apartment in search of his second mother, and finally told Emma of the truth that they had been keeping from her all this time.

 _Silence had fallen over the room as the Savior struggled to absorb the dark revelation and while Hook sat close beside her, she looked coldly between both of her parents as she spoke again saying,_ _"This whole time, I was right. You were lying. I wanted to believe you. I wanted to believe in you."_

 _Her parents looked back at her with remorse and in shame as David replied sadly, "We were just... trying to protect you."_

 _"Emma, are you all right?" Hook asked worryingly as he reached out to try to take her hand until she immediately pulled away from him._

 _"No," she answered curtly and then stood up to leave the room. "I'm not okay. I've got to go."_

 _Mary Margret rushed to catch her as Emma reached the door and then she pleaded softly, "Please, stop. I'm your mother."_

 _Emma glared at her as she responded, "I don't care."_

"Wait, and what about you?" David asked swiftly as Hook stood up himself so that he could go after Emma to try to comfort her. "What was that before? You're acting as though you somehow already know of what the villains did you."

"Not villains, just one; Rumpelstiltskin," the Captain replied in frustration. "And yes, I know."

The Prince stared at him in confusion as he asked again, "But how?"

Killian looked down in frustration, not wanting to explain with everything that was happening right now, as their focus should only be on Emma, but knowing that he had to give them something, he finally answered, "Because he didn't do this to me when we were asleep, but last night on my ship after I had spoken to Ursula of Gold's plans. I needed time to think, so I boarded the Jolly Roger and before I knew it, that monster was using my own hook to carve this foul word into my chest and there was nothing I could do to stop him. Dr. Hopper was out walking his dog and happened to find me after Gold disappeared. He kindly helped me back to my quarters, then I ordered him to leave and not tell anyone of what he'd seen, while I finished bandaging the wounds. I guess Gold wanted Emma to see what he'd done to me, to use it as a way to begin darkening her heart. He knows seeing me hurt will make her want to come after him, which is why you can't tell her."

"You can't… you need to tell her," David quickly objected as he looked at the man he had slowly come to respect, appreciating him for wanting to protect his daughter over himself no matter what became of him.

"It's as I told the cricket, I'm not the one who's in any danger," Hook responded coldly in regards to his own wellbeing. "Your daughter is. This will only heighten her anger and risk the danger she's in to becoming far greater. I won't allow that to happen."

Mary Margaret finally spoke again as she said with frustration, "You just saw how she reacts when she finds out someone's been keeping a secret from her, especially one such as our own, and now this?"

Killian looked away from them and started to leave again, but he suddenly stopped and without turning back he replied softly, "I will tell her only when we know the danger has passed and we've defeated Gold, as well as the rest of the villains. Until then, you can't say anything, not to her. I'll do all I can to help your daughter, I promise."

A lot happened within Storybrooke over the next few days that did not go in favor of those trying to stop the villains' plans. Regina fearfully discovered that Zelena was still alive, having disguised herself as Robin's wife, Marian, ever since the heroes believed that the witch had died, and was threatening to kill him if Regina didn't do as Gold asked of her. It was that same night that the heroes had finally released the Author from the book, only to have him slip away from them to be captured and manipulated into working for Gold.

To makes matters worse, Cruella De Vil also had kidnapped Henry and threatened to kill him if they didn't kill the Author and have his body handed over to her. Emma was left no choice, but to kill the evil woman in order to save her son, not knowing that Cruella was bluffing.

Hook, David, and Mary Margaret had grown worried when Emma had drifted into a dark place after she had killed the woman, then found out the truth about the Author having taken away her ability to be able to kill. The Savior had grown distant and because of the rift that had fallen between Emma and her parents, Killian and Henry were the only ones she had to lean on, but despite their support, she was still in a bad way.

The morning after Cruella had died, Maleficent entered Granny's diner in a passive demeanor and enlisted Emma's help to find her daughter, who happened to still be alive despite what the Charmings had done to ensure their own daughter's goodness. Regina traveled with the Savior so that together they would be able to rescue Robin from her sister, along with finding the dragon witch's child, Lily, so that they would be able to reunite Emma's childhood friend with the birthmother she never knew.

Upon succeeding in both tasks, despite the grim news of Zelena becoming pregnant with Robin's child, and the darkness that continued to fill Emma's heart after learning that Lily had known all along of David's and Mary Margaret's mistake, Emma and Regina returned home and reunited Lily with Maleficent, then they had the Wicked Witch of the West locked up in the psych ward of the town's clinic after making sure that her magic was neutralized for everyone's safety.

When they finally had time alone with each other, Killian walked with Emma down to the harbor as he sensed that the woman he loved was still distressed, despite having brought Robin home with the hope that he and Regina would be able to regain their happy endings, and the possibility of having righted the wrong she and her family had done to the villain and the friend Emma had long ago pushed away.

 _"What are we lookin' at?" Emma finally asked after they walked there and sat for several minutes in silence._

 _"The horizon," Hook stated as he motioned his head to have her look in the distance before them._

 _She did so, but quickly asked in confusion, "Is it doing something?"_

 _Hook turned his head back to look at her as he answered, "Well, I just thought you'd find it calming."_

 _"It is," Emma responded. "So is rum."_

 _"Emma, I can tell that your heart is uneasy," Killian spoke again saying gently, concerned that there was nothing more he could do or say to help ease her pain. "And it's my job... Well, I hope it's my job, to protect your heart, even when no one is physically trying to steal it."_

 _Emma looked at him as she replied with confidence, "You don't have to stop me from going after Gold. I'm smarter than that. He didn't turn my heart dark, and I'm not gonna fall into one of his traps."_

 _Hook looked down, then back at her once again and answered, "I'm not worried him getting to your heart. I was talking about your parents."_

 _"Oh, we talked about this," she said with a sigh._

 _"I talked, you walked away," he retorted and then continued to speak the harsh truth he knew she needed to hear. "I just wanna know, is anything gonna be enough? Or are you willing to lose them just to spite them?"_

 _Emma turned away from him as she held out her hand and responded, "Gimme back the rum."_

 _Hook did as she asked and then continued on even when she tried to interrupt him, not giving her the chance to do so. "They've done a lot of good. Turned themselves into heroes. Yes, I know they didn't own up to what they did. But did you ever think maybe they were ashamed? And they wanted you to like them."_

 _"I'd like them more if... I'd known they turned themselves around," she answered in frustration. "I like when people find their good hearts along the way."_

 _He grinned timidly and rolled his head, then responded sincerely, "They were trying to protect you, Swan. Twice. Before you were born, they wanted to make you happy. And when they found you again, they wanted to make you proud. Do you want both those to be failures?"_

The image of true love faded from within the crystal ball being held by Gold and upon doing so, the Author looked at the one remaining villain as he stated, "You failed, Dark One. The Savior may have killed Cruella like you wanted, but it didn't cause her heart to go dark because technically, she didn't murder her. Emma was only defending her son, as she had no idea that Cruella could not have kill him. And your hope that she would have killed Maleficent's daughter when she found her, that backfired on you too. Now, thanks to that pirate you hate so much, she's about to reconcile with her parents. What are we supposed to do now? Without blood from a dark Savior, I can't write you your happy ending, or mine."

"Don't worry, Isaac," Gold spoke up cruelly while he laid down the crystal and walked over to the safe hidden behind a painting on the wall inside his shop, then reached inside to pull out a small vile containing a few drops of Hook's blood he had stolen from him when he attacked him nights ago. "I have one final ace up my sleeve. It's about time that the Savior learns of the secret her pirate has been so nobly trying to keep from her in order to try to protect her heart. Miss. Swan may have saved her son, and she might forgive her parents yet, but the only way she'll be able to save the man she loves, is if she comes to try to kill me. And I will certainly not make it so easy for her to do so."

"You never cease to impress me," the Author said as Gold closed his eyes as if to concentrate. "I hope that whatever you are about to do works to darken Emma's heart, or we are finished."


	7. Chapter 7

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Seven

Meanwhile…

After they returned to their apartment from seeing their daughter and Regina come home, Mary Margaret pushed the door open in frustration, allowing it to swing wide, and stormed inside, then she threw her purse and coat down on the couch before finally settling in the chair nearby, not saying another word to David as he walked into the loft behind her with their son within his arms, sensing his wife's obvious anger as he did so.

He laid the sleeping baby down in his crib, then he turned to the woman he loved and spoke up saying sadly, "Mary Margaret, you knew that Emma would still be upset when she got back and you also know how long it takes for her to let go of her anger when someone wrongs her. You can't keep trying to push her into forgiving you, forgiving us, until she's ready to. If you do, then she will keep on resisting."

She quickly wiped tears away as they threatened to fall with the back of her hand and then responded in frustration, "Yeah, I know it. A part of me just hoped is all."

"So much has happened in such a short amount of time," David continued calmly. "First with the villains' coming to our town and resurrecting Maleficent, with Gold's own return to Storybrooke and all of them waging war against us, Cruella kidnapping Henry and Emma having to kill her to save him, then finally her having to leave to bring her childhood friend, whom she had pushed away a long time ago when she too had disappointed her, back to Maleficent… Our daughter needs time to process everything. Hell, we all still need time to process everything. In time, Emma will forgive us. I'm sure of it."

"Yes, but when?" Snow asked as she finally turned her head to look up at her husband sadly. "How long will she hold this against us this time? I know we deserve it, but do you remember when Emma truly forgave us and finally accepted us as her parents? It wasn't until after she returned from her time travel mishap to our past, David; almost three years. What if it takes her just as long to forgive us this time? I don't think I can handle that, not again. This is tearing me apart and there's nothing you or I can do about it."

The Prince was about to say something more to try to comfort her until a knock came to the door as Mary Margaret swiftly walked around him to open it, finding Maleficent standing there and then she immediately called out nervously, "David?"

 _The sorceress quickly said assuredly, "I'm not here to kill you."_

 _"Okay," David stated, seeming to appear skeptical of the villain's intentions._

 _"I just... I just want my daughter," the woman continued on as she still remained within the doorway._

 _David looked at her in confusion as he asked, "Lily isn't with you?"_

 _Maleficent looked just as Mary Margaret realized she must have back when she had learned of Emma's intentions of leaving Storybrooke to go back to New York as the sorceress answered, "She's leaving."_

 _"And you think we can help," Snow replied sincerely as she motioned for her to enter their apartment. "Come in."_

 _"You cast the second curse," the woman responded swiftly as she did as her former enemy had offered and stepped inside the loft. "Can you... Is there a way for you to seal the borders the way Regina did?"_

 _Mary Margaret shook her head regretfully as she answered, "I don't know how to do what you want. But that wouldn't be the right way, anyway. If she's upset, you have to get to the heart of what's wrong."_

 _The dragon sorceress replied in frustration and worry, "I don't know what's wrong. I don't know her."_

 _"Well, she's acting a lot like Emma did when she first came here," David responded honestly. "She had these... Her walls were always up."_

 _"She was afraid that if she opened herself up to me, I would let her down like everyone else had," Snow White continued for her husband. "And... Ultimately, I did."_

 _Maleficent looked pleadingly between the two people who had once stolen her daughter from her as she answered, "If you have any way to help... You didn't give her back to me then, but please, if you can help, do it now."_

 _Mary Margaret knew that she needed to do this, if only to try to correct the wrong which she regretted more than anything else in her life aside from not being able to see her own daughter grow up, and so she looked at the villain as she replied in sincerity, "Yes. Come on, David. Let's find her."_


	8. Chapter 8

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Eight

The Charmings' and Maleficent's search for Lily lasted longer than they would have liked, and when they finally did find her, somehow the younger woman had become so riled up that she had transformed for the first time into a dragon as her mother could do. In attempt to try to help her, Mary Margaret rushed forward without really thinking about her safety and was struck down hard by the troubled daughter in her beastly form. That was when Emma and Hook had found her parents after they left the docks to search for them, while Maleficent left them alone so that she could continue after her daughter on her own.

 _"Anyway, I miss you, and I forgive you," Emma finished as she looked kindly at her mother, then hugged her as Mary Margaret sat up and swiftly pulled her daughter into her arms, while David looked up at Killian in gratitude, knowing that he was the reason why Emma was finally able to forgive them._

"Well, thank heavens that's all sorted out," Hook said cheekily as he looked between the woman he loved and her parents, getting each of them to laugh, then Emma helped her mother to stand, while Hook reached his hand out to pull David up as well, but after he finished doing so, Killian all of a sudden cried out as he doubled over in pain, grasping his chest and collapsed to the ground upon his hook and knees.

Emma swiftly rushed over to kneel beside him as she pulled him into her arms and screamed fearfully, "Killian! What's wrong? Talk to me, please!"

Snow quickly looked at her husband as she stated worryingly, "This must have something to do with what Gold did to him!"

"What Gold did to him?" she asked in confusion when she turned to them as they both joined her and Hook on the ground. "Mom, Dad, what are you talking about? What did Gold do?"

Before they could continue, Killian seemed to slowly fall unconscious while still within Emma's arms as she took on the rest of his weight when he collapsed against her. She tightened her grip on him while David carefully rolled him over onto his back, then unbuttoned his jacket and shirt to get a look at the wounds he and Mary Margaret had believed were healing, as Hook hadn't been acting like he was in as much pain over the last few days that Emma had been gone.

"Hook didn't want to worry you," her father answered as he pulled back the clothing to reveal the ugly lacerations that had suddenly become infected as if they had gone untreated for days, not really knowing how Emma would react to yet another secret being kept from her. "This is impossible. He treated the wounds. I saw for myself that he did when we first found out about them. He assured us they were getting better."

Emma stared at the wounds while anger rose within her as she replied coldly, "Gold did this? That bastard carved the one word that scares Killian the most because he's terrified that he'll become that man again, even though I know that that's not possible."

Snow looked at her as she responded nervously, "On the night Killian spoke with Ursula about what his plans were for us, just after she and her father left town. He didn't want to upset you or make you fear for him on top of everything else going on. You were already too preoccupied with dealing with the villains and then with learning of what your father and I did to Maleficent and Lily… Killian was afraid for you. He was afraid to give you another reason to go after Rumpelstiltskin."

"Damn him!" the Savior answered angrily as she lowered her hand down above his chest as it emitted a white glow, her magic flowing from her and now through him. "Yet another secret I get to find out about too late. He should have told me, I could have healed him sooner."

"It isn't working," David spoke again with frustration after they waited for over a minute for the cruel wounds to disappear. "Can you sense what's wrong, or why… Wait, the villains were in our apartment the morning after while everyone was under the sleeping curse. Hook said Gold did this to him the night before, so it's possible he did something more to him then."

It was then that Regina and Robin both walked up on them swiftly from down the path as the Queen replied worryingly, "I'm afraid you're right. Sorry, but we were visiting my sister along with the Author when I got your text about coming out here in search of the dragon lady's dragon daughter, Mary Margaret. We would have been here sooner if I had thought you could be in any danger. It also took us some time to find you in these woods, hence the reason why we were walking instead of me using my magic to poof us here. I'm sorry I didn't think to tell you before about what Gold did to Hook, but with everything going on over the last few days, and as I believed Hook was in control of it, I didn't really think of it again."

Snow looked up at her as she asked, "You said that he did something more to him at our place?"

"I'm afraid so," Regina quickly responded as she reached out and tried to heal the pirate herself, only to find that she was unable to help him as Emma couldn't. "Gold had a small vile filled with a clear liquid and poured it over these wounds. I don't know what the liquid was and he didn't tell me what he was doing, but I promise you, Emma, I did everything I could to try to stop him. I was still undercover and I was too concerned about Henry at the time."

"I'm not angry," Emma answered in understanding and then leaned down as she gently kissed Hook's forehead. "Not at you, Regina, not at Killian, and Mom, Dad, I'm sorry for being so angry at you for so long. I shouldn't have been. But I am angry at Gold. He's hurt everyone I care about, I'm pissed off. He wants to turn my heart dark…"

Regina quickly interrupted, "Actually, I'm afraid I've already, unintentionally, given him and the Author exactly what they want. I might have made Lily a little angry so that I could get some of her blood. I figured that because some the darkness that's in her partially belongs to you, Emma, Lily's blood might do the trick and it turns out I was right. She is an anti-Savior of sorts. Unfortunately, Isaac got away with the new ink and went right to Gold. He's going to rewrite all of our stories."

Emma looked back down sadly at the man she loved still unconscious within her arms while tears fell from her eyes onto his face as she thought back again to the words he had spoken to her in the cabin after he had returned to Ursula her happy ending, the words that made her realize how much he really loved her and made her realize that she loved him too, then she looked over between her parents and replied, "Whatever Rumpelstiltskin's done to Hook, he'll let it happen to make him suffer, to make me suffer, before he allows the Author to finish writing whatever they have planned for us, even though they no longer need to darken my heart. We have little time to do everything in our power to stop them and we have to. I can't let Killian die. I can't lose him."

"You won't, Emma," Mary Margaret responded as she pulled her daughter into another hug to comfort her. "We will figure out exactly what Gold's done to him and fix it. We will save him."

"I'm afraid that's not necessary, Princess," Killian said cruelly after his eyes suddenly shot open, then immediately struggled to pull away from Emma and the rest of her family and friends as he stood up and swiftly pulled out his cutlass, readying himself to fight against them should they attack him, while they all could only stare at him in shock and fear over his sudden change in demeanor. "I don't need saving anymore, I'm finally free. Whatever spell it was you put me under to turn me into that weak minded fool for these years since I've known each of you, it's worn off. I'm back to my old self again. I am a villain, not some bloody hero like you lot. And my happy ending, Swan, certainly isn't you."


	9. Chapter 9

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Nine

Emma watched as Killian turned his back to her to walk away from them with devastation in her eyes as she called out fearfully, "Killian, wait, please! Please, talk to me. What are you talking about? What do you think I did to you?"

He froze and scoffed, then he turned his head around to look at her again as he replied, "I don't know what it was you did to me, love. That's the real kicker, but I do know that that person you thought I was, that man who risked his life over and over to try to prove to you how much he loved you, a woman who could never once, not once… tell him what he really meant to her, is not the man I am."

"I care about you," Emma responded nervously as she attempted to move closer to him until he immediately back away. "I thought you knew, Killian. Please, just stay with us. Let us help you… with whatever this is."

"When did you do it?" Hook asked coldly as he glared at her with pure anger in his eyes. "When was it that you cursed me with that whole different persona for whatever dark purposes you had in mind? Was it after I left this town in my ship that day this town was about to end, because I felt a sudden pull to come back so that you could save your boy from those that kidnapped him. Or was it in Neverland when you first kissed me that night after I foolishly saved your father's life? That was when I first realized I could come to love again after Milah, but right now, I have no feelings for you, but hatred."

Tears slipped down her cheeks as Emma shook her and answered sadly, "All of that was you, Killian. I never cast some spell to make you the man you really are."

He swiftly rushed to stand before her as he placed the point of his sword up to her throat and said cruelly, "My name, is Captain Hook to you, Swan. Only people I consider to be my friends call me Killian Jones. And I have no friends, only a crew of pirates who all call me Captain Hook as well. Now, I might not be able to kill you right here with the others around you, but if you attempt to interfere with my plans to kill the Dark One for what he did to me once and for all, then I will kill you too. Is that clear, love?"

"Rumpelstiltskin is the monster who did this to you," the woman in front of him whispered while she stared into his deep blue eyes, and saw the hate he had for her there within them, but also a small tremor of uncertainty, as if he didn't fully understand what it was he was feeling. "Try to remember."

"I remember all I need to remember," Hook replied curtly as he lowered his blade and then started walking away again, this time really leaving the blonde woman and the rest of those who were his friends behind to let everything that just happened sink in. "For your own sake, forget about me. You'll live longer."

As Emma simply stared in the direction he walked away for good this time in, not noticing her mother and father come up to her and place their hands on her shoulders to try to comfort her once again, she couldn't help, but think back to another time Hook had said such cruel things to her, the time when he and Cora had trapped her, Mary Margaret, and their friends from the Enchanted Forest inside Rumpelstiltskin's cell before leaving them behind in order to open the portal here to Storybrooke.

 _As he turned his back to her, Emma quickly called out, "Hook! Wait. Please don't do this. My son is in Storybrooke. He needs me."_

 _The pirate turned and started to walk toward her as he responded, "Perhaps you should've considered that, before you abandoned me on that beanstalk."_

 _"You would've done the same," she stated quietly while she kept her eyes on him as if to get a read on him._

 _"Actually no," he answered as he glared at her coldly and came right up to the bars of the cell, then pulled out a necklace, which Emma recognized from seeing it around the giant's neck. "Do you know what this is, Emma?"_

 _The Savior tried to grab for it as she replied, "The bean that the giant kept."_

 _Hook immediately pulled it away from her again as he responded, "Unh, unh, unh… Yes, indeed. A pirate always keeps a souvenir of his conquest, but this… Well, this is much more than a mere trinket. This is a symbol. Something that was once magical, full of hope, possibility. Now look at it. Dried up, dead, useless. Much like you. The time for making deals is done, just as I'm done… With you."_

"Emma, are you okay?" Mary Margaret asked worryingly again, upon her daughter not hearing her the first two times she tried asking while still trapped within the memory.

"No, how can I be?" the Savior answered with devastation in her voice. "We have to do something! We have to help him!"

David tried to calm her down as he quickly replied, "I agree, but we don't even know what Gold really did to him."

The Savior glared at her father and responded angrily, "Then, we go ask him and make him fix what he did to Hook. That monster's done too much to get away with what he's done. He's tried to turn my heart dark by tricking Cruella into kidnapping my son so that I would kill her, he nearly made me angry enough to where I almost killed Lily in New York, and now… Now Gold's cast some kind of spell or curse to turn Killian back into the villain he always feared he still was despite all the good he's done, for all of us. I will stop him, even if I have to kill him myself."

"Emma, you can't!" her mother cried out fearfully as her parents pulled her back around to face them. "Please, I know how hurt you are right now, how scared you must be for Hook, but… You can't become exactly what Rumpelstiltskin wants you to become, especially to stop him."

"I hate to say it, but your parents are right, Emma," Regina finally said in agreement.

Robin took the Queen's hand as he added also, "If you do, then Gold wins anyway."

Emma growled in frustration and then asked angrily, "All right then, what exactly do you suggest we do?"

"We do whatever we have to do, but we do it, as heroes," Charming answered valiantly. "We will figure out how to stop Gold and save Hook, Emma. I promise."

"But we do it, together," Snow White spoke again with confidence. "Whatever Gold's plans are with Killian, maybe the Author can be the key to stopping him and restoring our friend back to who he really is, a hero the same as us."


	10. Chapter 10

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Ten

After leaving the heroes behind in the woods surrounding their quiet little town, Hook swiftly made his way to the pawnshop where he knew his greatest enemy would be holed up along with the Author, while they worked on whatever dark plan they had in store for the people within Storybrooke, himself included. The Captain had been shaken by the words Emma had said to him moments ago, but it didn't matter to him. He wasn't about to let those lies she tried to get him to believe deter him from his goals of getting his revenge on Rumpelstiltskin at last.

"Good afternoon, Captain," Gold stated coldly as Hook entered the shop through the back entrance with his hook and sword raised and ready to strike the evil man down, finding him upon the floor in the main room as he clutched at his heart, while the Author immediately took a few steps back nervously upon seeing the pirate come in. "I suspected that you would be walking in here at some point. I take it that you're back to your old self again?"

"Aye, that I am," Killian responded skeptically upon seeing the smugness upon the villain's face despite the obvious anguish he was in from his heart becoming fully blackened by the darkness. "You did this to me? The foul word carved into my chest, the curse, or spell I was under… or am under…"

Mr. Gold used his cane, as well as the cabinet that he was leaning against as leverage to help him to stand up in front of Hook as he replied, "No, it's definitely the spell that you were under, Captain. I have freed you at last from the Savior's spell she cast on you years ago and restored you to the man you truly are."

The pirate stared at him as he looked for any sign of deceit, then he asked, "If that's true, Crocodile, why would you do this for me? That woman somehow twisted my mind into believing that I was a different man, a hero all for the sake of love, a man who wouldn't be here now to kill you now had you left me to remain cursed."

"Because Isaac here and I need your help," Rumple answered plainly. "But first let me ask you, what do you feel for Emma Swan now?"

"The love I felt for Emma wasn't real," Killian responded coldly as he looked between the two men standing before him. "I hate that woman for making me a man that I'm not, for using me for whatever making me that love-struck fool did for her. I hate her, her family, and the rest of those friends of hers. No one decides the kind of man I am, but me."

Gold smiled and replied, "That is exactly what I was hoping you would say. Forgive the cruel carving. I assure you, it was necessary to undo what the Savior has done."

Hook shrugged and then answered, "It's no matter. A villain is who I am. Tell me why I shouldn't kill you where you stand, Crocodile."

"Because we can give you something you want even more," Isaac said nervously as he looked between the pirate captain and the Dark One.

"What the Author here means to say is, we can give you something even better in replace of your lust for revenge," the real villain amended the other man's response.

Killian glared at the Dark One as he replied cruelly, "Seeing my hook buried through your black, dying heart is the only thing I want in this world. If death comes to me, so long as I see you dead first, it matters not."

Gold looked over at Isaac, then turned back to Hook as he glared at his enemy and answered, "You know what it is we are planning for all of us here in Storybrooke, heroes and villains alike. What if I were to tell you that Isaac can give you an equally substantial happy ending that will make your desire to kill me, obsolete? He can bring your beloved Milah back from the dead. Then together, the two of you will be free to sail off into the sunset and be pirates for as long as you both shall live. What do you say now, Captain?"

Hook once again looked skeptically between the two men before him as he lowered his blade and asked, "And if this was truly possible, what would I have to do? Surely you want more than just for me to not kill you, Dark One."

"Why, you must kill the only person now truly standing in the way of you getting your real happy ending," Rumpelstiltskin responded with a cruel grin. "You must kill Emma Swan."

"Actually, you have to kill the Savior and her son too," the Author quickly added. "They are the only two not born within the fairytale world, or at least, the boy isn't. And Miss. Swan is the Savior, so of course the rules for her don't exactly work the same way either. Her boy could be just as much danger to us as she is. They could both potentially ruin everything."

Killian chortled and replied mockingly, "So, that is why you helped, free me from that infernal curse over me. Because you can't kill one woman or her fourteen year old son."

Gold answered angrily, "The Savior's power makes her strong and able to thwart whatever plans I have come up with to try to destroy her, yes, but so long as you are truly the real villain you claim to be, Captain, then this time, I will not fail. You are the only one who can get close enough to her and the boy because despite her intentions for casting the spell over you in the first place, she mistakenly fell in love with you against her better judgement and those of her family's as well. Miss. Swan, will do everything in her power to try to save you, or protect you long enough to reinforce her spell once again. You will use her feelings for you, against her and then kill her. So, what is it that you say, dearie? How badly do you wish to be with your real true love?"

"I'd say we have ourselves a deal, Crocodile," Hook responded after taking a few moments to think about the Dark One's proposal, while clenching his jaw out of disdain for even considering something coming from his enemy's mouth. "But if you fail to keep your word to me this time, I will come back here to kill you as I should have done the day we met and this time, I will succeed."

"Duly noted," Rumple replied in frustration and then watched as the pirate left the shop by walking out the front door.

As soon as he was gone, the Author moved to stand beside Gold and spoke up again saying nervously, "I thought I told you that bringing the dead back to life is not possible, even with magic as powerful as my quill and ink."

The villain looked over at Isaac and answered smugly, "It matters not. I never intended on keeping my word to him anyway. You shall rewrite the Captain's story the same as we have discussed, whether he succeeds in killing the Savior and her child, or not. And when you do, his threat will no longer matter."

"And if he does fail, then it's possible Miss. Swan can ruin everything," the Author responded again. "Their deaths, are the only way to guarantee our happy endings will last forever."

"Try not to worry so much," Rumple replied. "Win or lose, we move forward with everything as planned. All of the heroes, as well as Hook, will be miserable, and we villains, will get exactly as we deserve for once."

Isaac nodded and then asked, "And if Hook can't do what we need him to do, what kind of story is it that you wish for me to write for the Savior? I can't leave her out of the book as I can her son. She must be a part of it in some way."

Gold grinned as he answered, "I have just the thing for her. You will write her in is as a mad hag locked away in a tower. All of her memories will remain intact, but she will have never had any powers. She will no longer be the Savior."


	11. Chapter 11

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Eleven

When they arrived back in town and started toward Gold's shop, but it wasn't long before they were interrupted as Leroy ran over to them as he called out crossly, "Do you guys know what the heck's gotten into Hook? He's acting strange, more like… the way he was when he first arrived here in Storybrooke, but even more coldly than before. He called me dwarf and told me to get lost. He never calls me that anymore."

Emma quickly asked, "You saw him? When? Where did he go?"

"Yeah, he uh… I saw walking off toward the docks," Grumpy answered in confusion, seeing that there really was something wrong. "Less than five minutes ago. I don't know if that's where he actually went, but I saw him walk out of Gold's. You don't suppose Rumpelstiltskin did something to him, do you?"

"Unfortunately, he did," Snow quickly responded. "A few of us should go and see if we can find Hook, while the rest of us go in to talk to Mr. Gold and the Author."

Archie came up on the heroes as he was walking back to his office from having lunch at Granny's with Marco, who had already left to go be with his son while he was still recovering at the mansion, and upon overhearing part of their conversation he worryingly asked, "Forgive me for prying, but has something happened to Hook?"

As Emma continued toward the pawnshop, her parents and friends followed her as David looked at the psychiatrist as he replied, "Unfortunately yes. Gold did something to him that made him transform somehow back into the man he was when he first came into town."

"Oh no," Archie stated sadly. "I knew that I should have told you all that night, but I promised Hook that I wouldn't. I take it that the spell has something to do with the word Gold carved across his chest; villain?"

"Gold!" Emma shouted angrily outside the door after she attempted to walk inside, but found that a barrier was up all around the shop, keeping each of them out. "I know you're in there! The Author too! I just want to talk. What the hell did you do to Hook?"

Coming to believe that her attempts to break inside to talk to the villain was useless, it was then that Emma's phone rang as she discovered it was the man in question calling her and she quickly answered, "You really are a coward if you're too afraid to talk to me face to face you son of a…"

Gold cut her off short of the name she was about to call him as he responded, "Unh, unh… Miss. Swan. I suggest you regain control of your anger if you really want to help the Captain."

"What did you do to him?" she replied in frustration after taking a second to calm her anger, then placed her phone on speaker so that the others could hear his side of their conversation too. "Why would you turn Killian back into the man who wants nothing, but to kill you?"

"I'm afraid I need that ruthless pirate he used to be for a task, as he's the only one who can give me exactly what I want," the villain answered smugly. "A guarantee that you heroes will not be able to thwart my plan once more. You should have allowed my attempts to darken your heart, Savior. If you had, you could have saved the man you love a lot of heartache and pain. Or do you love him?"

Emma looked around at the people surrounding her as she responded, "What business is that of yours? Please Gold, let us help you. I know about your heart. Surely there's something we can do for you. All you have to do is undo the spell you cast on Hook and let us in. Are you really willing to destroy what little good is in your life now to get a happy ending that will never be real?"

Rumpelstiltskin replied cruelly, "Believe me, all of you heroes' misery and my happiness will become very real and there won't ever be anything you can do to stop it, because you won't even remember who you were before, or that you once had a different life. If you really want to save Hook, I'm afraid true love's kiss isn't the key. True love's kiss would only work if both lovers acknowledge the love that's between them, and seeing as you are uncertain of your love for the pirate, and really why wouldn't you be, I'm afraid he's recently developed a deep hatred for you, dearie."

"That's enough!" Emma cried angrily. "What do I have to do to save him? Answer me!"

"I'm afraid that, you will have to discover for yourself," he answered. "But good luck, Miss. Swan. Fighting Captain Hook now, won't be like fighting me or any of the rest of the villains you've faced before. You're going to have to make a sacrifice, if you really want to save him. By the way, when was the last time you saw your son?"

Emma looked back at her parents, as well as at Regina and Robin, who all immediately shook their heads as if to say they didn't know where he was, then upon hearing a click on the other end, indicating that Gold had hung up, the blonde woman immediately took off toward their apartment in search for Henry as she tried to call his cell phone, while Mary Margaret and David did the same as they ran towards the diner, Regina and Robin dissipated in her cloud of purple smoke as they went to search for him at her vault and at the mansion, and while Archie and Leroy aided in their search for both Henry and Killian, as they left toward the docks. Gold's question meant only one thing and that was that Henry was in trouble.

Meanwhile…

Henry was down on the beach looking out over the ocean while he read the book that was his family's and his friend's lives, their stories that he was afraid were about to be erased and rewritten to become something terrible for all of those that he loved. He also knew that whatever the Author was about to do, there was the very real possibility that he wouldn't be able to be a part of it, as he wasn't a part of the magical world.

About a half an hour after he arrived down there and made himself comfortable, his thoughts were suddenly disrupted as Killian walked up from behind him, Henry not knowing that there was anything wrong with his friend, aside from the possible discomfort from the wounds he received from Gold.

Hook was the first to speak as he stood beside the fourteen year old and said, "There you are, lad. I've been looking for you. You've certainly found yourself a fine spot to watch the horizon."

Henry smiled as he responded, "Yeah, I guess I did. It's quiet out here. I've been worried about what's coming and everyone's been edge. I just needed some time alone to think."

"Yes, well that's certainly understandable, but your mother's been worried about you," Killian replied as the young man finally stood up next to him while they continued to stare out over the water. "How would you like for me to take you out on my ship tonight? It feels as though it's been some time since I've had the opportunity and with what might be coming…"

"That would be great, but are you sure that it would be smart to go out there now, you know, with everything going on and all?" Henry spoke again when Hook trailed off. "We should probably be getting back to help my moms and the others to find a way to stop Gold and the Author."

Hook nodded and then answered, "Don't you worry about that, your family and the others have that covered. I promised both your mothers that I would protect you until all of this blows over, in case Gold tries to send another villain or something else after you."

The boy looked over at the captain as he responded, "I appreciate that, but I'm tired of having to be so protected all the time, especially after Mom had no choice, but to kill Cruella in order to save me. I don't want something like that to happen to you too."

"It's nice to know you care, but I'm afraid that you really don't have much choice in the matter," Killian replied coldly when all of a sudden, he wrapped his arm around Henry's neck as he held a damp cloth up over his nose and mouth and held it there until the chloroform the cloth had been soaked in did its job in knocking the young man unconscious, despite the struggle Henry had tried to put up. "And it isn't actually me you have to be worried about, only your mother."

"Swan," Hook stated again as he pulled out his cell phone and began to leave a message for her when she didn't pick up. "I realize how despicable it is to use a child in order to get what it is I want, especially after the last attempt this was tried worked out so well, but I'm afraid that it's the only way I know you'll come out to my ship to meet me alone. Do not bring the other heroes. If you do, then what happens to Henry will be your own fault. I'll see you soon."


	12. Chapter 12

Protecting Her Heart

Chapter Twelve

"Henry!" Emma cried out as she ran to the edge of the dock where the Jolly Roger was tied off after having received his voice message when she didn't find her son at home, and then immediately boarded the ship, not caring about anything, except for saving both her son and Killian too. "Hook, I'm here. I came alone just like you asked."

"I knew you couldn't resist," the pirate captain replied smugly as he stepped out into the open having come up from his quarters to confront the woman he believed was his enemy as much as the Dark One was.

While his hand rested on the hilt of his cutlass, she slowly began to walk toward him as she asked fearfully, "Killian… Hook, where's Henry? Please, tell me that he's…"

He quickly interrupted, "Don't worry, Savior. I assure you, your boy is completely unharmed. I only used him in order to lure you here. I may be a villain and a pirate, but I do believe in good form and killing a child, even for the greater good, is very bad form. He's free to go as soon as he awakens. It's really you that I want."

"Why are you doing this?" Emma asked again fearfully as she continued to move closer to him once more while she looked into his eyes in hope of seeing that tremor there that she'd seen earlier. "What has Gold and the Author told you?"

"He wanted me to kill both you and your son of course," Hook answered as he turned his back to her, then continued on. "Gold told me that your deaths were a guarantee that the Author's rewritings of our stories would remain intact, but I plan to use his own plan against him. I will use the Author myself so that he can write Rumpelstiltskin's demise. I know the crocodile has no intention of keeping his word and truth be told, I don't care about that, not really. I don't wish to kill you for a happy ending that may or may not be real, but because you somehow cursed me so that I would do your bidding. Just tell me why? Why did you have to betray me again, when I had forgiven you for abandoning me up in that giant's lair up on that beanstalk and came back so that you could rescue your son from Pan? I risked my life, fighting against an enemy as ruthless as the Dark One himself for you and cursing me to become someone I'm not is your way of repaying me?"

Emma watched him as he turned to face her again and said in frustration, "I never cursed you! That was all a lie spun by Gold to get you to kill me so that I wouldn't stand in his way of ruining our lives once and for all. He was the one who cast some kind of spell over you, twisted your mind, your memories… everything that made you the man you really are. Killian, please try to remember. You know that I would never do anything to hurt you. I don't know all that Gold has done to you or has made you believe, but I do know that the good man I've come to care for deeply is still in you somewhere. You just have to fight for him, fight for us."

Killian scoffed and then asked coldly, "You still can't say it, can you? You claim that you care about me and sometimes you act as though you love me, but how am I supposed to trust you if you can't even say three simple words?"

"It's complicated," she sadly responded. "You know this and the real you, he understands. Not Captain Hook, but Killian Jones is patient and selfless when it comes to caring about and protecting those he loves, especially me and Henry."

"Enough of this!" he suddenly shouted painfully as he pulled his blade from the scabbard over his left side and pointed its end toward her, preparing to kill her as if he had no choice, his mind and chest feeling as though they were on fire. "I am done talking. Your words are nothing, but nonsense and lies."

Emma could see the pain on his face, as it was clear that the man she knew and loved was struggling against his actions from the back of his mind, which was when she remembered Gold's words to her, having said that if she really wanted to save him, she would have to make a sacrifice.

Henry had awakened and came out onto the deck from the captain's quarters where his friend had laid him earlier, just in time to watch in confusion and fear as his mother walked over to stand directly in front of Killian as she handed him her gun and replied calmly, "If killing me is what you really want, if the man that I see struggling to break free of the control he's under can't find his way back, then go ahead and kill me. But I trust you, Killian. Don't let the villains win. You're not one of them. Please, come back to me."

"Mom, what are you doing?" Henry asked worryingly as he watched the scene play out before him. "Killian?"

"Henry, stay back," Emma called out firmly, while her soft eyes remained on the man now aiming her own weapon at her chest. "It's okay. I promise."

Killian trembled, his agony flaring hotter than before while he fought against the force within him, urging him to kill against his will, as he kept his furrowed eyes steadfastly on the woman he knew he loved with his whole heart. Tears came to Emma's eyes as she could see his pain, then suddenly and without warning, he swiftly used his hook to slash deeply across his chest through the letters carved into his flesh as if to wipe the foul word away, causing him to scream until he collapsed to the floor of the deck and fell as though he were lifeless, a fever now raging within him being the only sign that he was still alive.

Emma cried out for him as she screamed, "Killian! Killian, no!"

Henry ran over to them in fear as he immediately pulled off the jacket he was wearing and draped it over his friend, while Emma quickly pulled Killian's head onto her lap and held him tightly. Both Archie and Leroy had arrived onboard the ship just in time to watch as its captain attacked himself before he could hurt Emma, then they came running over to them as well while the psychiatrist placed a call for an ambulance.

Grumpy didn't really think before he spoke up saying insensitively, "I can't believe your pirate just did… well whatever he just did."

"He isn't just some pirate," Henry answered curtly to defend Hook. "He's as much of a hero as the rest of us are. Mom, can't you heal him?"

"I don't… There's still residual magic left over from Gold's spell, or whatever the hell it is he did to him," the Savior responded fearfully, keeping her eyes on Hook while she focused while resting her hand over his chest, trying to heal him only to find that she couldn't. "That son of a bitch said that it would take a sacrifice to undo his spell. I was willing to die at Killian's hands because I knew he would be strong enough to break free, and Killian hurt himself before he could hurt me. The magic should eventually wear off, now that it's done what it was meant to do."

Hours later…

Killian slowly awoke early into the next morning within a hospital bed inside the town's clinic and found the woman he loved lying beside him in a restless sleep, her head resting on his right shoulder, while one of her hands held his tightly as if doing so was his only lifeline. Emma sensed his movement and immediately sat up as she looked into his eyes and gripped his hand tighter, then used her free hand to gently stroke his face, not caring that he could see her crying in relief upon seeing that he was going to be alright now.

Emma spoke before he could as she whispered, "I knew that you were in there somewhere. You're going to be fine. Maybe a bit sore for awhile, but I was finally able to heal your wounds. It took time for Gold's magic to leave your system; what you did to yourself with your hook, the letters that monster carved…"

Hook suddenly cut her off as he asked fearfully, "Did I hurt you, and Henry?"

"No, no we're both okay," she replied sincerely. "You stopped yourself. You beat the real villain, Killian."

"Aye, but I did exactly as Cruella did to lure you into a trap," he answered remorsefully as he looked away from her. "I kidnapped your boy, and I aimed a gun at your heart after I swore I would protect it. I allowed the bloody Crocodile to control me, again."

Emma carefully turned his face toward her once more and looked deeply into his eyes as she responded, "There would have been nothing you could have done, except for exactly what you did, although I wish you didn't nearly kill yourself in order to break free."

Killian closed his eyes as a single tear slipped down his cheek while he continued weakly, "I felt the vile power fighting against what little willpower I had left burning inside my head and chest. I could hear a voice telling me to be the villain I really was. The things I said, the things… I couldn't stop. I'm so sorry. I love you, Emma."

"You have nothing to apologize for," the Savior replied sadly as she tightened her grip on his hand, then kissed him on his forehead. "You are not a villain, if you have to be placed under a curse to become one. And in the end, you did stop yourself. Gold will pay for what he's done. I promise you, Killian. Unfortunately, he and the Author are holed up in the pawnshop with a protection spell around them keeping us out. We're doing everything we can to stop them before Isaac can finish rewriting our stories, but so far we haven't had any luck discovering how to yet. We're all going to head back to the mansion to search the books for answers. Regina thought that maybe whatever he might be writing, could possibly appear within his books, or the apprentice's books that is. If only we knew where to find him."

"That sounds like a good plan," Hook stated quietly. "If you help me out of this bed, I'll join you."

Emma tried to push him down again as Henry came inside the room and exclaimed eagerly, "You're awake! We were all worried about you."

The pirate captain looked between the woman and the fourteen year old as he asked quizzically, "We? Who all's here?"

"Well, Henry and me, my parents, Archie, August, who's doing much better too by the way, and even Leroy's come to see how you're doing," she answered as a smile finally came across her face for the first time in days, since Killian reunited Ursula with her father as Emma smiled when she looked over at him with admiration and love. "He's his usual, grumpy self and he claimed that he was upset with you for calling him dwarf, but even he's been worried about you, not to mention impressed with the amount of strength it took for you to protect us against yourself. And Granny sent over some food for you too. You're going to eat and try to get some more rest. That way, you'll be more up to facing whatever trouble comes with tomorrow. I'll be right here with you."

"I didn't realize so many cared," Killian responded in surprise. "Please tell everyone thank you for me."

Henry smiled and replied, "I will. I'm glad you're okay, Killian. Storybrooke would be boring without you around."

Hook laughed and then answered, "I'm glad to be of service. And Henry, I owe you an apology too, lad. I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to resist Gold's curse when I kidnapped you. I hope I didn't hurt you."

"You didn't," the boy responded sincerely. "I'll admit it did scare me a bit at first, but I knew that you would never hurt me if you weren't under a spell. Once we defeat Gold and Isaac, if you promise to take me out on the Jolly Roger again for some night sailing, then I'll forgive you."

"You have my word," Killian replied, then watched as Henry walked back out of the room.

Emma looked down at the pirate as she spoke up again asking playfully, "Do I get to come too?"

He chuckled and answered, "Of course, love. I'd be honored to take out my two favorite people in the whole world onboard my ship. I've shown your son how to navigate the stars. If you wish, I can show you as well."

"I would like that very much," the Savior responded as she leaned down and kissed him tenderly while she held his face within her hands.

Inside the villain's shop…

 _"It's time to finish," the Author stated confidently after he wrote the last sentence within his new book that was about to change all of the fairytales as the world knew them, turning them into a new storybook that would finally grant all villains their happy endings and turn the heroes' lives upside down. "The end."_

The End


	13. Thank You

Thank you to all of those who have read and have written reviews for my story! They are much appreciated. I'm honored to have you all for fans and I hope to hear from you all again in the future, should you choose to read and enjoy more of my work. Best of wishes to you all!

Sincerely,

Genevieve Kelly


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